درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of observational expert and beginner model on learning basketball free throw skill in those with different levels of imagination capability. For this purpose, 30 students with high imagination capability and 30 students with low imagination capability were selected among volunteered students and divided into 6 groups. The free throw accuracy and model were measured with 10 throws at the pre and post-test stages. At the exercise stage, the participants also performed 240 throws based on the specific protocol of the group. The experimental groups watched the video of the Expert or beginner model at the beginning of each exercise block while the control group did not watch any kind of video. The results of multivariate covariance analysis showed that the accuracy and the model of throws in different groups were significantly different. Those with high imagination capability benefit more from observational learning and learned better than those with low imagination capability. Also, those with high imagination capability significantly benefit from Expert model observation. The results of this research show that in addition to the characteristics of the observed model, which can have a great impact on observational learning, the observers’ characteristics are also very influential in this. One of these effective characteristics was the individual's imagination ability; people with lower abilities were more likely to encounter problems with the use of observational learning. Therefore, developing of individual's imagination ability is necessary for this type of learning.

The purpose of the present research was to examine the effectiveness of meta-cognitive strategies training on the cognitive failure in patients with general anxiety disorder (GAD). This quasi-experimental design consisted of two groups, with pre-test/ posttest and the control group. Considering the experimental nature of the research and also, with regards to the drop in the number of 30 people (15 in each group), patients with generalized anxiety disorder (DSM-5) were selected according to the available criteria and were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups according to entry requirements. In both groups, the scale of Broadbent et al. Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) was carried out. Then, the experimental group underwent metacognitive strategies in 10 sessions of 90 minutes and the control group did not receive any training. At the end, the same questionnaire was administered in both groups. The results of the two groups were evaluated in two stages using relevant statistical tests. Multivariate covariance analysis showed that meta-cognitive strategies training significantly reduces cognitive failure and its subscales (distraction, memory defects and inadvertent errors) in patients with general anxiety disorder (P<0/05); there was no significant difference between meta-cognitive strategies training with the subscale of not remembering names (P>0/05). Despite the differences in the scores of cognitive failures in the group studied, it is recommended to use metacognitive strategies to reduce the symptoms of cognitive impairment in patients with generalized anxiety disorder.

This study explored the relationship among working memory (WM), speaking accuracy and length of utterance of Iranian Intermediate EFL learners. The data were collected from 38 female EFL learners whose age range was between 12 and 15 studying English at a language institute in Tehran. First, an Oxford Placement Test (OPT) was administrated to ensure the homogeneity of the participants and based on the results of the test thirty homogenous learners were selected as the main participants of the study. Next, a working memory capacity test developed by Daneman and Carpenter (1980) was administered to the participants. Later, the researcher administered a speaking test on a topic appropriate to the level of the participants which was taken from Top Notch 1 (Saslow & Ascher, 2011). Then, the researcher recorded their voices and transcribed them in order to calculate the number of lexical words the students could articulate based on a formula developed by Gilmore (2004). Speaking accuracy was also measured using a formula developed by Gilabert (2004); In fact, the students' performance was rated by two experienced teachers.  Then, the Pearson correlation formula was utilized to analyze the obtained data. The results revealed a significant correlation between working memory capacity and speaking accuracy. Based on the findings, no significant correlation was shown between working memory and length of utterance. And finally, no significant correlation was depicted between length of utterance and speaking accuracy.